1984 Ford Diesel...Ranger?

Hey guys, long time no see. Been a busy summer for haying, so I haven't been in here as often as I like. But, I came across a smaller diesel that I wanted to ask about.

Now I know this is the IDI forum...but this is the one place I know to ask when it comes to older ford diesels. Went ahead and posted in the Ranger/B-series board anyway though.

Have a few questions that maybe you all can help me with.

First off, what are the pros and cons of these small trucks? Engine or anything related.

In case you are wondering, I looked into it and these smaller trucks came stock with a diesel option for a year or two.

Speaking of the engine, how do these hold up and are they expensive as far as parts? Or are they easy to find at all?

I believe the truck I am looking at has a 2.3L Mitsubishi diesel that is NA. What kind of reputation do these engines have? I have seen a similar 1985 Ranger with a turbo diesel...wonder if it is the same engine...

I will probably have more questions, but any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

As far as I know the Rangers were first fitted with a 2.2L Perkins diesel producing an incredible 59hp and they then went to a 2.3 Mitsubishi turbo producing an astonshing 85hp.
I remember a thread running on the Ranger page (I think), maybe about this time last year but can`t remember much.
There is I am told a vid on You Tube of an original diesel Ranger doing a 0-60, may be worth a look.
I also saw somewhere that some guys are getting up to 28mpg out of them.

they do get awsome mpg but parts are hard to find i almost bought one a couple years ago and i know a guy that has one and had a really hard time finding a head gasket for it he had to get it from overseas

You can turbocharge them with some imagination. I remember reading that the internals are overbuilt and its an all gear driven engine (no timing belts like the later 2.3 SOHC) and has a cast iron head.

Also heard that its in fact a mazda engine not perkins (built under licence or something). Not sure exactly, mayby its a mutt of some sort, but it will be underpowered in stock form no matter what if is if there is no turbo.

We've got a ranger with the later 2.3 TD and it has potential for more than 86 Hp if you have the time and some money to build them up. New head bolts are not necessary.

i think one would be fun. I jsut see it now a little diesel ranger wit hteh stock motor pulling 150hp and 350TQ wiht a nice set of stacks and getting 30MPG I would love one to tinker on being a mech. injected diesel nut (cummins 5.9 94-98.5 12v)

Thanks for the replies guys, think I just might pass on this one considering how difficult it is to find parts. For $600 it sounded like a steal...but with a rarity in parts comes a higher expense as well.

If you want a turn key operation thats drivable without having to make major mods, look for the later (1985-1987) 2.3 turbo diesel ranger. The feel much more peppy than the advertised horsepower and are able to even do some work.

The basic design of the mitsubishi turbo diesel has been in production for many years and its descendant is still in production after hyndai bought the rights to the later 2.4L engine. Tons of parts are backwards compatible from the newer 2.4 to the older 2.3.

The aluminum head sounds bad at first, but after reading up on it, I found that its actually very unlikely to pop a head gasket on them unless they overheat or run EGTs too high. Bumping up the boost is frighteningly easy and it will smoke the tires if you feel like messing with the settings.

If I had the time I would have built up the engine some more, but for now its simply been upgraded to a newer head with thicker castings, better flow, and a roller cam.

Unlike the 2.2L, this one will pass 80 MPH and our ranger is a 4x4, with canopy and slight lift. Not bad for an engine that can reach 30 MPG.

You can turbocharge them with some imagination. I remember reading that the internals are overbuilt and its an all gear driven engine (no timing belts like the later 2.3 SOHC) and has a cast iron head.

Also heard that its in fact a mazda engine not perkins (built under licence or something). Not sure exactly, mayby its a mutt of some sort, but it will be underpowered in stock form no matter what if is if there is no turbo.

We've got a ranger with the later 2.3 TD and it has potential for more than 86 Hp if you have the time and some money to build them up. New head bolts are not necessary.

I always heard the same too, that it was a Mazda. Was it the same 2.0 diesel used in the 80s Tempos and Escorts ?

I always heard the same too, that it was a Mazda. Was it the same 2.0 diesel used in the 80s Tempos and Escorts ?

I don't think so. The rangers had a 2.2L for the non turbo diesels. However I did also hear rumors that some early ones may have been fitted with a 2.0L N/A and some later 1987-ish might have recieved a BMW diesel. Was never able to confirm either the 2.0 or the Bimmer engine.

I was really supprised at just how hard it was to find info on any of the diesel rangers.

I don't think so. The rangers had a 2.2L for the non turbo diesels. However I did also hear rumors that some early ones may have been fitted with a 2.0L N/A and some later 1987-ish might have recieved a BMW diesel. Was never able to confirm either the 2.0 or the Bimmer engine.

I was really supprised at just how hard it was to find info on any of the diesel rangers.

I do know of one guy who bought a Ranger diesel parts truck and the seller said it was very slow and it was a strippo 2wd. It might have been a 2.2. He told me they were never offered in 4wd models and I think he mentioned standard cab only.
Mazda (and Toyota, Mitsubishi, Isuzu and Datsun/Nissan) also had a diesel pickup offered, I'd bet since the Courier was a Mazda the Ranger diesel was probably a Mazda, being Ford and Mazda were in bed together at the time.
I have seen one Lincoln Mark (VII is it ?) with the factory BMW 2.4 6 cylinder turbodiesel, I think it was 1984 only.
Ive also seen three S10 diesels on Ebay at different times and the sellers claimed they were factory (Isuzu powered) Seeing some were built with the 1.9 Isuzu before the 2.5 4 cylinder it might be true. Also the Chevy LUV was an Isuzu and both offered a diesel that kinda also backs that up. By the way, many Isuzu pickup diesels were used in mines down here in Kentucky, they had a rugged rep and really got the living snot beat out of them !

YES! I remember now, the BMW engine was supposedly a 2.4L displacement (was thinking 3.4 but knew that was wrong) with some ~130 Hp. Hard to imagine that much power in a diesel ranger. But again, since I never saw one, I don't know if its true.
I also heard of a ford LTD being offered with the mercedes 3L turbo diesel (inline 5) roughly around 1985.

Would be really neat to see all these old diesel conversion experiments if there was a source for the info, but they seem to have all just vanished.

I heard that 4wd was an option for the diesel rangers, but the only ones I ever saw so far were long box regular cab 2wds. The ranger we have is 4x4 extra cab with canopy and rack but it moves just fine It originally came with the 2.9 EFI V6 and its honestly hard to tell them apart dispite a significant horsepower advantage to the original gasser.

I'm guessing the diesel puts out 90-100 Hp right now with the newer head and roller cam. Starts running out of steam past 70 MPH, but it will pass 85 under the right conditions.

This forum is owned and operated by Internet Brands, Inc., a Delaware corporation. It is not authorized or endorsed by the Ford Motor Company and is not affiliated with the Ford Motor Company or its related companies in any way. Ford® is a registered trademark of the Ford Motor Company.